Baby Blues
by Duel Mistress K
Summary: (Armada AU-ish) Sequel to Resurrection. Chapter 11 UP! A BAD SONGFIC CHAPTER AHEAD! Run for your LIVES! But RNR before you do...
1. A Visitor

Hello peoples! This is the long-awaited sequel to 'Resurrection'… so YAY! Um… and if you hadn't picked out the pairing by now, this'll confirm it for sure… And I know the title seems freaky, BUT IT DON'T HAFTA DO WITH BOTS MAKIN' MORE BOTS… that's just… nasty… oO'' yeah…so anyways… enjoy it…

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Chapter one

The plaintive cries of an infant echoed across the barren land that was once an Autobot outpost. Bodies of expired Autobots could be seen strewn about as smoke rose from still-burning fires. That's when a Decepticon passed by a sheet of rubble. Cries were coming from it, and so naturally, the 'Con lifted the debris. Underneath was a black and silver infant, with a red Autobot symbol on his left shoulder.

"Hehe, what do we have here?" The towering 'Con said maliciously, looking down at the baby. Reaching out to it, the black and silver bot lashed out and bit his enemy's hand.

"OW! WHY YOU LITTLE RUNT!" The Decepticon roared, grabbing him by the scruff and lifting him up. "You'll PAY for that!"

With that, the 'Con opened up a warp gate, and punched in a set of random numbers, chuckling evilly to himself. After the gate had fully opened, he drew his hand back and lobbed the baby into it head-long.

His cries echoed afterwards.

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Wheeljack was sitting alone on the edge of a moon crater. He sighed heavily, looking out to Earth. For once, he wanted to go down there, just to take in the sights and sounds… it was just so dead on the moon. And for once, he wanted to defect back to his original team. 

Things had gone from bad to worse at the base, and 'Jack couldn't take much more of it. Decepticons only cared about conquering and battling, not about comraderie and trust… he missed that. As much as he wanted to dennounce it, he did miss being an Autobot.

But Megatron wouldn't let him out of his sight… he was too valuable a warrior. Oh, but how Wheeljack wanted to go. Prime treated his men like actual living beings… Megatron thought of his men as nothing but pawns that were expendable. Thrust drove him insane as well, with his foolish Astrology bit and his annoying suck-up spiel as well. If only-

Suddenly an alarm went off across the moon, and seconds after that, Cyclonus' voice crackled to life on his commlink.

"EY! GETCHER AFT BACK TO THE BASE! SOMEONE'S USIN' THE WARP GATE!"

"I'm coming," He muttered, wincing from the 'copter's vocal volume. "No need to throw out your vocal box…"

"Just GET BACK HERE!"

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Within moments, every Decepticon at the base was assembled at the warp gate. The telltale noise reached their auds, and soon, everyone had a weapon of some sort drawn. But what happened next was astonishing: with a flash, a small baby Transformer appeared!

All of the Decepticons stared. "THIS is what we're worked up over?!" Cyclonus asked incredulously.

Megatron shrugged off the Hellicopter's arrogance, and turned to Thrust. "I thought you said that this gate was SECURE…"

Thrust gave a nervous chuckle. "Well, eh-heh, perhaps a hacker, or a codebreaker…"

"I do NOT need excuses." The tyrant snapped, facing the baby that sat on the floor of the warp gate, staring up at these new faces. That was when Megatron took note of the red Autobot symbol on his shoulder. "Ah… so this is an Autobot infant… Prime would hand over the Minicons for him…" He reached out to it, but was greeted by a sharp bite. "OW! IMPUDENT CHILD!" With a harsh smack, the child was sent back against the hard metal wall. He no longer cried, but looked terrified and dumbstruck.

"Uhh Megatron sir?" Thrust began weakly. "Perhaps we should… uh, destroy it?"

"Yesssss… I will have another chance to capture the Autobots' Minicons…" His leader said coldly, leveling Leader-1 in weapon mode at the black and silver baby slowly.

Wheeljack held his breath in anticipation. 'Don't hurt him!' the Autobot half of him screamed, but outwardly he remained silent. 

Megatron surveyed his men before firing, and took note of Wheeljack's expression. 'Hmm… is he becoming too soft?' He thought to himself. 'Perhaps I need to test my soldier's loyalty…'

"Wheeljack," The horned leader quipped unemotionally. 

The said Transformer's head shot up, and he straightened his stance considerably. "Yes sir?"

"You are to dispose of this Autobot as you see fit, do you understand?"

"M-me?"

"Must I repeat myself, soldier?"

"No, no sir, not at all," He answered humbly.

"Then carry out your assignment."

The black and gold mech put on his best 'Decepticon' face for his leader, and took the black and silver baby bot into his hands. "May I warp down to Earth to get rid of him?"

Megatron jumped to conclusions. "Don't tell me you're thinking of deserting…"

"No sir!" He grinned malevolently down at the baby bot. "I was thinking about how long a Transformer could survive in one of Earth's active volcanoes…"

His leader cackled. "A fine way to torture our enemy, Wheeljack! Do as you wish with that creature."

The ex-Autobot dropped to one knee and knelt before his leader. "As you wish, sir."

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Kiluea, Hawaii, Earth

Wheeljack stared down at the deep crater that was the volcano. Deep below, vermilion and bright orange molten rock seethed within, bubbling and spurting steam every so often. Even at the mouth of the crater, the heat was stifling. The infant in his left arm struggled and whimpered, but did not cry. When he had been stuck by Megatron, it had been like the young Transformer had been broken in some way.

"Easy little one," he told it, as if talking to an adult. "You're not going down there."

Taking in a deep breath, he opened a small panel on his wrist. "Activate warp protocol…. Destination: Autobot base."

TBC

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There… one chapter done… maybe I'll finish this for once… oO'' wouldn't that be nice…. Feh… anyway, REVIEW! …and that means you, Flamestrike. Don't nag me t' update without reviewin'…. :D Ja Ne! 


	2. Welcome Back

Hmm…this is quite odd… I actually had this chapter done before Resurrection was finished. That, and chapter four, too. Wow. Strange. Anyway, sorry if I confused anyone with the little baby bot… He'll be integral in bringing Wheelie and Windy t'gether if ya know what I mean… Alright, here's chapter two!

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Chapter 2

SCREE! SCREE! SCREE!

"AGH!" Windracer tumbled off of her recharge pad quickly, and landed with a dull thud on the ground. "Damn… don't the Autobots know of a little thing called the 'snooze button'?!" 

Windy pulled herself to her knees, letting her dragon-like wings unfold and stretch for a moment. That's when Sideswipe went running by her open door. "C'mon sis!" He shouted quickly, stepping inside.

"What's going on?"

"Invaders!" he answered, grabbing her arm and helping her to her feet. "Someone's warping in!"

"So the 'Cons want into our base again… Alright, lets get outta here!"

Warp Gate, Autobot base

Seconds after reaching the warp gate, Windracer saw a form take shape, and then appear fully.

It was Wheeljack!

Instantly, seven weapons were leveled at the Decepticon, minus Windracer, who hadn't forgotten that he had saved her only a few weeks before, and Optimus, who really didn't look forward to a firefight.

"Well, well, look who's come for an aft-kicking!" Hotshot spat, keeping his optics trained on his former best friend.

"I'm NOT here to fight," He snapped, bringing his focus onto Optimus, who was calmly surveying this situation. "I've come here for help."

"HELP?!" Hotshot echoed, seemingly insulted by this. "You've got a LOAD a' nerve coming to US for help!"

But Optimus help up his hand, silencing his soldier's rather irate voice. "Lets hear your reasoning, Wheeljack, before I make my decision."

The Decepticon nodded, and shifted his position. A small object of black and silver was nestled tightly in the crook of his arm. Windracer looked closely at it, and gasped. It was a baby Transformer!

Hotshot snorted. "What'd you do NOW? Don't tell me he's YOURS…"

"He's not," 'Jack snapped. "I'm guessing he was thrown into a warp gate, and just so happened to appear at the moon base. Megatron ordered ME to get rid of him."

"And so why didn't you?" It was not Hotshot who asked, but Optimus. "You could have just abandoned him in a desolate spot, so why come to us?"

Wheeljack looked down. "I realize that I made a mistake when I changed sides all those years ago… and I humbly ask that you accept my request to rejoin the Autobots."

Hotshot barked a harsh laugh. "Now THIS is funny! I'll bet you're gonna ditch us like Starscream did!"

"I will NOT!" he shouted back, his Decepticon temper flaring. "I'm NOTHING like him, I stick to my promises!"

"Oh yeah, well ya obviously didn't when you swore loyalty to the Autobot cause the FIRST time around!"

"That was different! I was-!!"

"Will you two PLEASE quiet down?" Windracer interrupted quietly and calmly. She gestured to the baby mech in Wheeljack's arms. "Besides, you guys are scaring the armor offa this little guy… So would it hurt you to just put your weapons away?"

Optimus nodded in agreement. "Windracer has a point. There's no real need for weapons right now."

Hotshot and Sideswipe, still not very happy about the events that took place back when Wheeljack had first come to earth, begrudgingly placed their weapons back into their subspace pockets. But, ignoring the tension between the three, Windracer walked calmly toward the Decepticon.

"Let me take the little guy," she said to him, stepping closer.

"Windy, don't go near him!" Hotshot quipped, suddenly. "We can't trust this guy as far as I can throw 'im!"

She huffed. "Give it a rest, Hotshot, he IS the one that saved me from the oh-so annoying Blenderbutt…."

"B-but…"

Windracer ignored Hotshot's pleading and had now reached Wheeljack. "Here, lemme see 'im."

The 'Con turned protective for a moment. "Be careful. I think he's been injured."

She couldn't help but smirk. "Don't worry, he'll be safe with me." Grudgingly, 'Jack handed him to her, and, almost instantly, the baby bot pressed himself against her, trembling with fear. Upon closer inspection, the baby did look damaged, and so she turned to RedAlert. "Hey-"

The medic answered her question, before it had even been asked, and nodded. "Come with me and I'll look him over."

"Okay," Windy said. "You guys can straighten all of this out without me and the little guy.

Prime nodded, and watched the two, plus the infant, head for the medbay.

Hallway, Autobot Base

"So, uh, Red, Whaddya think his name is?"

The medic smirked, but shook his head. "I wouldn't have the slightest clue."

The former human looked down at the child, who was still trembling, but not as much. It was then that she took notice of his coloration. "Heeeeey! Raider's colors!"

RedAlert stared. "…Come again?"

"You know… Oakland Raiders, the football team?" She took notice of Red's blank expression and sighed. "Over your head… 'S a human thing… Anyways, the Raiders' team colors are black and silver…"

The medic looked thoughtful, and smirked. "Hmm, Raider seems suitable."

"Hehe, yeah!" She then brought her ice blue optics down to the infant. "So ya like that, Raider?"

The baby giggled and nodded, giving a little smile as well. 

"Well alright then, Raider it is!"

Warp Gate, Autobot Base

"So the fact of the matter is that you want to change alliances again?" Optimus questioned calmly.

Wheeljack nodded, not focusing on anyone but Prime, for his former friend looked about ready to jump at his throat. "I have already removed as much of my Decepticon programming as I possibly could without risking injury to my hard drive."

Optimus thought for a moment. "Hmm… I hope you know that once you join, you WILL be targeted by Megatron."

The Decepticon nodded. "I know. But I will do my best to keep that between him and I."

Prime shook his head. "As an Autobot, we function as a team. One members' problems become the whole teams' problem."

Wheeljack looked pensive for a minute, and then nodded in response. Inwardly, he was smiling to no end. 

"Well then, I have nothing more to say to you, other than Welcome back to the Autobots, Wheeljack."

"You've GOT TO BE KIDDING!" Hotshot shouted in protest.

But Optimus seemed to ignore his attitude and said calmly. "Trust me Hotshot, I do NOT kid about such matters."

"…So he IS on our team now?!"

"Yes."

Wheeljack, out of habit from the many years under Decepticon control, dropped to one knee as a salute. "Thank you, Optimus sir."

Prime looked down at him and said in a friendly tone. "On your feet, Wheeljack. I am not Megatron."

The new Autobot brought his optics up from the floor to Prime, who stood stock straight and saluted him with his right hand. Taking his example, Wheeljack rose and did the same.

At that moment, Wheeljack couldn't be any happier. He was now free of Megatron, free of the Decepticons, free of keeping this facade up any longer. To him, at least, he had returned 'home'.

TBC

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Ha! There! …ya like??? ^___^ pweeeeze don't flameth me! Me liketh this ficcie thus far… yeah… so review it… hehe… yeah…. Me go now… Armada's on in about five minutes… __''


	3. A Minor Victory

….alright people, this took longer than expected because I couldn't find the written version of this chapter… I basically had to do it from memory… and my memory bites. So that explains it….alright go ahead and read. Funny thing is, this was done AFTER chapters four and five… oO;; I skip around like that…it helps out quite a bit. (Like in Seeking for A Place to Belong.. NOT. I have the last five chapters of that one done, I just have to get there, first…) Okay, enough from me, read on!

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Chapter 3

          "So Red… is it serious…?"

          The medic had almost completed his examination of the little Transformer. "Well, physically all he's got are a few bruises, but aside from that I'd say he's fine."

          That was when Windracer noticed something. Every sudden movement she or RedAlert made was greeted with cringing and visible fear. "He doesn't _look_ fine… I mean, just take a look at the little thing…He's scared stiff of all of us…"

          "Psychological damage, no doubt…"

          "But I wonder what could have done that to him…" Windracer seemed deep in thought as she pondered this. 

          It was then that a new voice answered her question. "Megatron did. He nearly flattened that child." Windy turned quickly, and saw Wheeljack standing at the door. He seemed a tad uncomfortable, shy even, and kept his optics trained on Raider. 

          "Really…? What happened to him?" She asked, concerned.

          He seemed quiet for a minute, and then realized that neither of the two Transformers in the room meant him harm, so he gave a gingerly-placed step forward. "Megatron attempted to pick him up, and got bitten, and so he smacked him hard. Hit a wall on the opposite side of the room."

          "That jerk!" Windracer said rather hotly, ticked off at this new information. But, at this outburst, Raider cringed and whimpered. "Oops…sorry, kid… I didn't mean to scare you…" She then gently reached down and picked him up in her arms. As a sign of forgiveness, he nestled into her, smiling contentedly, followed by a yawn.

          "Gee, I think the little guy could use a recharge…"

          RedAlert nodded in agreement. "More than likely." He then brought his attention to Wheeljack, whom he regarded as a part of the team already. "Something you need?"

          "No," He answered, "I just wanted to see if he's alright."

          "Well he should be fine."

          "Good…" A minute smile crossed his face when he looked back to Windracer and Raider, but it disappeared once he caught himself.

          Windy, however, caught onto this, and started over in his direction slowly. Raider remembered Wheeljack as his savior, but his almost dark persona repelled him. "..I'm…getting the feeling he doesn't like me…" He said tersely, watching the tired little mech eye him warily.

          "Aw, give him a while- he'll warm up to you soon enough"

          He looked uncertain for a moment, then nodded. "I suppose so…"

          Noticing the odd silence, RedAlert, who had tried to make himself busy and ignore their chat, cleared his throat. "Perhaps…you should show Wheeljack to his quarters, Windracer?"

          "Oh, uhh…yeah…Well come with me and I'll take you there…" She started a bit uncomfortably.

          He nodded quietly, bringing his optics back to Raider, who was still eyeing him with caution.

          "Alright then…" And with that, Windracer led Wheeljack out of the medbay to his quarters. As they walked down the quiet hallways, she noticed her new teammate's muteness. "Why so quiet? You should be happy that you're back on your old team…"

          "I know I should, but it's going to take a lot to earn their trust….

          "Well from what I saw, Optimus trusts you…and no doubt RedAlert and Scavenger do, too." She then added shyly. "And so do I…"

          His head snapped up at that. "Y-you do?"

          "Yeah! I mean…well…you saved my life back at the moon base, so why shouldn't I?"

          He gave a small smile, then noticed that Raider was peering over at him curiously from Windracer's arms, and directed his smile to him. The young Transformer giggled and smiled back, and Windy watched this with amusement.

          "Y'see? Looks like the munchkin's already getting used to you…"

          Wheeljack felt a little better with that and nodded, his smile present still. "I don't know what it is…but I was wondering…Could…I keep an eye on him? Have him stay with me?"

          Windy grinned, picking up on the mech's protective streak. "I don't see why not. Plus, he would really get used to you that way…"

          He agreed, nodding, a little bit happier that Raider would be under his care, but tried to hide his sudden yet very strong attachment to him.

          Pretty soon, the three Transformers came to a stop at a closed door, one that led to Wheeljack's new quarters. The airlock door slid open silently, and as she stepped in, she flicked on the lights. The tall and silent mech followed, and looked around his new surroundings.

          "Wow…these aren't anything like the dwelling quarters on the moon base…"

          "Gee, sounds like Megs was a real hospitable guy, huh?" She answered dryly as she bent down and set Raider on a Minicon-sized recharge bed gingerly.

          Wheeljack barked a half-amused laugh. "Yes, well, I didn't know what I was getting myself into back there…It was too late by the time I knew I had done the wrong thing…"

          "Burned too many bridges, huh?"

          He nodded. "As you can see with Hotshot…It seems like only the other day he was begging for me to come back…"

          "Well…you did hurt him, and not just physically. He's just bitter that you finally decided to come back now of all times, ya know?" He nodded quietly. "He'll befriend you soon enough…just give it time…"

          "I suppose that's the best thing to do…"

          "Oh, and the others…don't worry about them. Jetfire and Hotshot might not be really happy about this, but I didn't see any protests from RedAlert, Smokescreen, Scavenger, or Blurr."

          "…What about the younger one?"  

          "Sideswipe? Well you nearly killed him in a fire…"

          "…Point taken," he muttered, looking at Windracer out of the corner of his optics and switching into thinking mode. He still wondered why the slag he set her free-she had battered him in battle just minutes before, so why? He had deleted compassion from his emotion chip, but she brought it back. And she claimed to be a human… even stranger still. And back on the moon there was a moment where she tied his tongue and made him stumble over words like a child just learning to speak. He couldn't…_like_ this femme, could he?

          "You alright?"

          Wheeljack's head snapped up. "Huh, what? Oh…fine…just fine. It's just that my energy is running low…" He looked over to Raider, who was sound asleep already, his optics going slightly dim.

          "Ah…ya need rest then, don't ya?"

          He nodded. "I don't mean to kick you out or anything…"

          "Naw, it's alright. I'm supposed to train with Scavenger in about five minutes…dangit, I should prep a C.R. chamber beforehand…"

          "You can't possibly be that bad of a fighter…I mean, look what you did to me last time we fought."

          "You asked me to."

          He slouched over a little bit. "Oh…yes… true."

          She stood on tiptoe, stretching a little, and turned halfway, her arms folded behind her back. "Well, rest up. You and that kid have been through _some_ excitement today…"

          He nodded, that numb feeling grabbing hold of his voice modulator. "I-I will…And thanks for standing up for me back there…"

          "It was nothing…You did the same for me, right?" He seemed a bit flustered at her kindness, getting him to blush a bit, and again he couldn't talk. At that, Windracer smiled and started to walk out. "I'll see ya later then." And walked off.

          "Y-yeah…see ya…"

***

Training Hall

          Boom! With a thud, Windracer was on her back and staring up at the ceiling faster than she could realize. "Ow."

          "Come on! Your mind's not in this room today!" Scavenger shouted as he raced at her, without giving her a chance to regain her bearings. Balancing on her feet, she was greeted by a sharp and painful kick to her midriff, throwing her into the wall. "Get your head out of the clouds, _Caitlin_!"

          She winced. Only if she had ticked someone off would they use her human name, or if she wasn't listening and they wanted her attention. "I'm a little preoccupied right now, so lay off!" She shouted back, tackling him hard and pushing him back several yards, but was stopped abruptly. Scavenger soon had hold of her waist, and had lifted her clear off the ground. Kicking her feet desperately, she was thrown hard into the ground, on her back once again.

          "Well _snap out of it_!"

          As he dove down to bring her into a stranglehold, she brought her feet up instinctively. For a minute, Windracer's feet were planted hard in the elder mech's midsection, and then, with a surge of movement, she flipped Scavenger over her head and onto the ground. Soon she was up, pinning him to the ground, and her crossbow was leveled at his neck, him still splayed flat on his back. A few tense moments passed, the room almost alive with the energy.

          She blinked suddenly, breaking out of the trance. "Holy…did I…just…?"

          He smiled, winded, still on his back as he loosened up. "Yes, you did. A very good show."

          The former human stepped away, shocked. "You let me win."

          "No, I didn't. I let my guard down once, and you took advantage of it."

          "B-but…You're supposed to be able to kill me…" She was bewildered. Did she actually win for once? After weeks of losing or having victory dangled just slightly out of reach, did she actually beat him?

          "…yes, but you're skills are definitely improving. However… your lessons won't be over until you can repeat this victory, _without_ a 'close call' win."

          "Fine by me…" She was still stunned. And sore. But the pain was nothing compared to the shock that took priority.

          He stood, and walked past her, a slight limp in his step. "You shouldn't be so surprised, Windracer. It was only a matter of time before this happened…" He walked off silently, leaving the femme to think about this alone.

TBC

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DMK: …so how was that? Uhh…the last part was totally off my head too, I didn't even have that little Windy vs. Scavenger part written… oO;; (Yeah…I found the written copy later, so now it's done in half the time…) This was bad, even by my standards, I know that already. Don't worry, I have some humor thought up for it…it'll just take a while to get to that point in the fic. Hope you enjoyed, and oh, I have a fanfic that isn't getting any reviews…it's a G-Gundam/Transformers Armada crossover, and I've only gotten one review since I updated… T___T if any of you have nothing do to, I'd gladly accept reviews for it, or else it goes bye-bye… Okay, enough negative stuff from me, hope you enjoyed. 


	4. Setting out to Explore

DMK: ARRRGH! This is GOING to be chapter four if it's the last thing I do! ::off having a conniption fit:: I'm getting tired of doing this!

Hotshot: Doing what? O.o;;

DMK: Writing a chapter and realizing it fits in much later in the story! I've got two later chapters all ready finished…I just have to fill in the gap. HELP MEEEEEE! ::falls down author's pit of despair::

Hotshot: .;; ::gets Smokescreen to drag her back up using his crane:: Okay, since DMK has been reduced to a gibbering pile of mush, I'll just kick off this chapter for you…AND ENJOY IT! 

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Chapter 4

Sideswipe nearly fell out of his chair. "No way! You beat him?!" He looked up at Windracer with surprise.

"It was just barely, though…I don't even think he was trying his hardest…"

"A win's a win, you know! You shouldn't be so humble about it!"

That was when Hotshot chose to walk in, muttering furiously to himself. The two younger Transformers followed them with their optics curiously. He grabbed himself an Energon cube, scowled, and drank at it half-heartedly. Hotshot's optics were a dangerous shade of light blue, and no one wanted to mess with him right then. Windy looked across to Sideswipe, a _'What now?'_ expression on her face. The racecar Transformer shrugged subtly, just as confused as his surrogate sister.

The female's dragon tail twitched in slight agitation, and she mouthed, _'Well, do something!'._

Sideswipe's optics brightened, and he pointed to himself, asking silently, _'Who, me?'_

Windracer rolled her optics in exasperation, as if saying _'No, the Queen of England, of course you!'_.

Gulping, the younger mech stepped forward cautiously. "Uhh...bro?"

Hotshot's head snapped to look in their general direction, his frown still very visible. "_What_."

"Uhh...well-"

"What's up with you and Wheeljack?" Windracer interrupted flatly. "One minute you want him back as an Autobot, next you're acting like Megatron with his armor on too tight."

Hotshot brought his attention up to her, his look turning a bit more sour. "You think I should just welcome him back? After what he did to me an' Sideswipe? After he nearly killed you as a human HOW many times?" The femme didn't respond; she was busy processing what he'd just said. "Listen Windy, you don't know Wheeljack. I do. If ya know what's good for you, don't trust him. He'll stab you in the back, just like he did to me."

Windracer thought even more deeply about it. _'Okay...so he's nearly killed me a few times, I was in the way when I was a fleshie... And...and with Hotshot and Sideswipe... he was a 'con... he had to do it...'_ She tried convincing herself of Wheeljack's good, if misguided intentions. _'Plus...if I turn my back on him, there'll be no one at the base short of Optimus that'll treat him equally...he WILL go back to the 'Cons if that happens...And he saved my life once! My trust is the least I can offer him!'_

"But bro...ya gotta remember, he saved her up on the moon. Why would he do that if he wasn't genuine about changing sides?" Sideswipe interrupted calmly.

Hotshot didn't even bat an optic. "He can act. Believe me, he can. I'll bet you anything it was just a show to get on our good sides."

That was it. Windy had taken enough bashing from her savior and new teammate. The dragonlike wings across her back folded tightly inward, and her tail twitched twice from obvious disdain. Starting forward, she began to leave the room.

"And where are you going?" Hotshot called to her as she left.

"Somewhere to think. The way you're bashing Wheeljack is driving me insane." She responded flatly.

"Sis!" Sideswipe stepped forward, but was stopped by Hotshot.

"Let her go. She'll learn the hard way about being so quick to trust someone..."

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Hallway, Autobot Base

Muttering furiously to herself, Windracer stomped down the desolate hall alone. Her small Minicon partner, however, came out of an adjacent room as she passed.

Hey! Where the slag are you going? the Minicon called to her.

"Somewhere. Hotshot got on my nerves again..."

Oh? What'd he do this time?

"Kept grilling Wheeljack for no real reason. I just gotta go shoot some targets or something..."

The Minicon stopped his pursuit of the femme, and watched her walk off, confused to no end...

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Wheeljack's Quarters, Autobot Base

...Hey, boss-man, is it safe to come out...?

"As safe as it'll get," Wheeljack replied. With a mental command, the wing-like armor across his back opened, and his Minicon, Windsheer, came tumbling out.

Cripes, I need a parachute when I do that...or a pillow... The miniature Transformer mumbled, rubbing his sore rear end. He got to his feet, and noticed the sleeping infant Transformer in the far corner of the room. Aha, so there he is. How's he doing?

"Well, he should be fine...he just got a bit roughed up by Megatron...nothing life-threatening." That's when it dawned on him: he was going to be dogmeat come the next mission. Instantly shuddering, the mech pictured various ways that his former commander would exact revenge upon him.

Just realized what we're in for, did you? Windsheer asked ruefully. Well, who cares. We oughta be fairly safe with the rest of the Autobots around...right?

Wheeljack scratched his chin, and sighed. "We probably will be. Though the biggest problem I think I'm going to have to face doesn't involve the Decepticons..."

You mean Hotshot?

The Autobot looked down at his partner, confused. "...How'd you guess?"

I scanned part of you when I was activated. I know ya like the back of m' hand....

"I figured that much..." He trailed off.

Windsheer sighed heavily. So you're really _this_ worked up over the other Autobots?

"Yes, I'm really not too sure if I'm going to be trusted around here..." He sighed heavily, sitting down on his recharge bed wearily. Putting his elbows on his knees, he laced his fingers together and rested his chin on his hands. "It'll take a bit of doing..."

No kidding...say, let's go check out the rest of this base...Ya wanna? Windsheer headed to the door a bit excitedly.

But Wheeljack looked back at Raider and sighed. "I'm not too sure. What if he wakes up?"

Oh. Crud, good point. Well, I'll watch him, you go get to know this place. Wheeljack opened his mouth to speak. Don't worry, I'm sure.

The mech blinked at him and his slightly psychic powers, shook his head, grinned for the first time since Windracer had been in his company, and headed out of the room cautiously. He actually feared running into Hotshot alone...

TBC

........................................................................................................................................

DMK: THERE! DONE! FINALLY! ::collapses onto a beanbag chair::

Hotshot: O.o;; but that was short…

DMK: don't worry, I divided up this one into two chappies….Mwahahahahahahaha…

Hotshot: what for? I was getting into it….

DMK: …. . . It'll make it seem like a long time has elapsed between now and when the good stuff starts… Anyway, I know this was bad, so can you be nice when flaming? Please?

Hotshot: they ain't gonna flame you…. ;; And if you do, I'll call up Energon Inferno to put the fires out. So just review nicely!


	5. A Leery Hotshot

DMK: Okay, this is the second half of chapter four, now dubbed chapter 5! n.n;; I still have to make a few days pass between here and the next one, so.... Yeah... anyway, WARNING: THIS IS A FILLER CHAPTER. NOTHING VERY PLOT- FURTHERING HAPPENS. JUST A LOT OF TALKING. SO RUN, RUN AND HIDE!

Hotshot: O...kay...

Energon Inferno: ....she's lost it... v.v;;

Hotshot: I don't think she ever HAD it to begin with....

* * *

Chapter 5

Hallway, Autobot Base

Windracer continued to saunter down the hallway towards the training room. Over the loud thuds of her steps, angry mumbling could be heard. She was so absorbed in her thoughts she almost stepped on Rad, Carlos, and Alexis.

"Woah! We're down here you know!" Carlos shouted after jumping out of harms' way.

Windy snapped awake. "Huh? ...Oh. Sorry. Wasn't thinking."

"Obviously," Alexis mumbled wryly. She then peered up at her formerly human friend. "...say, you look like you're in a bad mood..."

"And I have every right to be," The Autofemme answered in a clipping tone.

It was Rad's turn to question. "Alright, what'd Hotshot do now?"

"Well, he-" Windracer stopped. A look of terror was plastered on all three kids' faces. "Uhh...guys...?" Leaning over a bit, she tried to get a better look at them. "What is it?"

Alexis managed dully, eyes wide: "Behind you."

"De-De-De-DECEPTICON!" Carlos added, pointing behind Windracer and diving behind her foot with Rad and Alexis. "We're under attack! AHHH!"

She blinked in surprise and stared at them. Then she turned around. "Oh. Hey Wheeljack." He nodded quietly, and Windy gave him a friendly smirk. Looking back to the three humans hiding behind her; "Rad, Carlos, Alexis, chill. He's on our side now."

Carlos peeked out from behind her. "You...sure?"

"Positive. He just showed up this morning from the 'Cons base."

"What for?" Rad again. This time he had directly adressed Wheeljack.

For a moment, the former Decepticon couldn't find his voice. "Well...I just realized I was better off... with the Autobots. I have friends here..." He said quietly. "And I was given an opportunity to escape today, so I did..."

"What kinda opportunity we talkin' about?" Carlos asked.

"A baby Autobot was sent through a warp gate earlier," Wheeljack began. "He arrived at the Decepticon's moon base, and Megatron obviously wanted it destroyed. I said I'd go get rid of it down in a volcano, so I warped to Earth, and from there made a break for the Autobase."

"Though there are a few here that absolutely detest this idea," Windracer added hotly, staring at the ground.

"Like?" Carlos was the one asking.

"Hotshot," both Windracer and Wheeljack responded in unison.  
  
Rad looked thoughtful. "Well I can kinda see why..."

"But ya gotta remember that he saved Windy, dude," Carlos didn't even notice he had just defended Wheeljack. "And from what he said, he saved that little Transformer, too."

"I wish Hotshot would just realize that," Wheeljack mumbled. "It seems like he would stab me in the back if I let my guard down."

"Well don't let it get to ya, man," Carlos said to him. "He'll come around eventually. Hey, I'll go talk to 'im about it. We're all good amigos."

Wheeljack looked puzzled. "'Amigos'?"

"Friends," Windy said. "But watch yourself, guys. Sideswipe and I tried to get him to change his tune and he's still adamant about antagonizing him."

Alexis gave a chuckle. "Well he DOES have the hardest head around... Don't worry, we'll be good. Come on guys, let's go."

The three took off down the hall they had just come from, with the two Autobots watching them go. "Now see? Not everyone around here is as bad as Hotshot..."

Wheeljack nodded. "I noticed...by the way...where were you headed?" His voice was starting to grow a bit soft again as shyness took hold.

"Me? ...Target range. I need to blow off a bit of steam anyways... And you?"

He chuckled quietly. "Just...exploring...But if I stuck with you..."

"Well come on then," She said in a friendly tone. Reaching forward, she grabbed his wrist and gave it a small tug.

"Uhh...sure..." He followed the femme, her hand still around his wrist. He cleared his throat.

"Oh! Sorry..." She released his hand and gave a weak laugh as they continued walking. Windracer tried desperately to kill the uncomfortable silence. "So...how's Raider...?"

Wheeljack was just as uneasy. "I left Windsheer with him...he's still sleeping like a rock..."  
  
The two were walking side by side. "Hopefully he won't be so scared now that he's safe...right?"

"I hope so..."

After that, silence became deafening. The only thing to split it was their footsteps. On occasion, Windracer glanced at Wheeljack out of the corner of her optics, only to look away quickly as he did the same. Thankfully, it was only about another minute of this until they arrived at the target range.

The door slid open, and they both walked in. Nobody was there, but the shattered ceramic disks on the floor told them that someone had been there not too long before. "Well...I guess we're here..." Windy began, the uncomfortable feeling almost suffocating.

Wheeljack looked around, a bit awed. "Wow...we had nothing like that up at the moon base..."

Windy gave a small giggle. "Yeah, well... we do here. And it's great when a few of us get into a little competition. Unfortunately Blurr happens to win most of the time...Come to think of it, want to have a race of our own?"

"Uhh...us? Right now?"

"Well sure..." The femme walked up to a nearby computer and typed in a series of numbers. Wheeljack just watched. "Unless you're afraid or something..."

"Me? N-no..."

The femme gave a soft laugh then. "Then let's do it."

Gripping her crossbow that had been stored at her hip, Wheeljack looked a bit confused. "You plan to use that?"

She brought her attention up to Wheeljack. "Uhh...yeah...why not?"

"I'd think you'd just want to use a gun of some sort, that's all..."

The femme looked thoughtful for a moment. "Huh...well now that you mention it..." She passed a glance to the wall nearby, and headed towards it. "That sounds like a good idea..." Windy pressed the panel in the wall, letting it flip open to reveal a vast number of guns, and grabbed a wide-barreled weapon without much thought. "There."

Wheeljack blinked a little in surprise. "You're just going to use it without really testing it?"

"Okay... I'll give it a test-drive..." She replied, walking up to the boundary. "Commence Target Sequence 9-0-0-4."

Almost instantly a ceramic disk was spit from a small hole in the wall. Windracer raised the gun up and fired, but missed by several feet. The recoil had caused her to step backwards and miss her target entirely. She bumped into Wheeljack by accident. "Whoops..." Windy began. "Kinda knocks you for a loop if you're not careful..."

Wheeljack chuckled. "Need help then?"

"Umm..."

"Here," he said, forgetting his shy facade for a few fleeting moments. The mech reached forward and gripped Windracer's hands as he guided them into a proper shooting stance. Her back was pressed into his chest as he leaned into her, his head beside hers. "Now try firing...that's the way you've got to hold it."

Windy watched another target as it was launched, and managed to fire it. The recoil again forced her backwards, but Wheeljack's body kept her from loosing any more balance. They both grinned when they heard the ceramic disk explode in midair.

"Good...now let's do that again..." He said calmly. Another disk shot out of the wall, and the two shot it down with ease. "See? Do you think you've got it down now?"

"Yeah...thanks for the help," She said as she turned her head to look at him. 'Jack's face flushed with circ Energon when he realized just how close he was to her... For a moment, he started to lean forward, something coming over him. He gathered his senses seconds later and reared back quickly.

"Umm...it...it was nothing, really, just showing you the ropes," He stammered as best he could, looking down at the floor.

Windy grinned, then looked back to the target range. "Well then, you want to start the competition?"

"...Sure..."

"Commence Target Sequence 0-9-3-8-4." Windy commanded after smirking at Wheeljack. A light on the center of the wall shone red, then yellow, and then became green. A buzzer sounded, and a single target was launched.

"I got this," Windy grinned. But 'Jack was a step ahead of her, and shot it down quicker.

"Sorry, _I_ do," he told her teasingly.

"Not for long!" She gave a tiny whoop and turned back to the target range fully. "This one's mine!" BANG!

"Fine!" Wheeljack called back with a smile on his face. CRACK! BANG! "Now we're even!"

Windy laughed and shot down some more. Wheeljack did the same. Eventually, the two got so caught up in their practice, all that could be heard were the shots of the laser rounds, the explosions of the targets, and their laughter.

"No fair! I called dibs on that one!"

"Like the Pit you did! _Hey_!"

"C'mon slowpoke! Can't you keep up?"

"Oh, I can keep up!"

"Bring it on!"

"As you wish! Ha!"

"D'oh! Revenge will be mine!"

"Not very likely-Gah!"

Windy broke into laughter again, and continued to laugh even after the machine wirred down and deactivated. Wheeljack smirked at her, and started to chuckle softly. Pretty soon, both of them were just facing one another, their weapons on the grounds, laughing like loonies.

Unfortunately, they didn't notice Hotshot, whom was watching all of this from the open door. Leaning up against the doorframe, he interrupted in a bitter tone. "Having fun?"

Both of their heads snapped around to see him there. Their laughs had stopped almost instantly, and Wheeljack quickly became edgy.

"Yeah, we were having fun, so sue us." Windracer said in a flat tone, taking one step forward. She hoped that her attitude would take him back a little, but Hotshot didn't buy it at all.

He shifted his gaze from Windy to Wheeljack indifferently, his optics shining with contempt. The quiet and humbled Transformer backed down within moments.

"Sorry...if I was imposing..." the former Decepticon mumbled. "I'll see you later, Windracer..." Sullenly, he stored his laser gun in its holster and turned for the door to leave.

_'I won't let you get Windracer, Wheeljack,'_ Hotshot thought bitterly as he watched him go. _'Never...'  
_

TBC

* * *

DMK: v.v;; so...that sucked...I know...don't shoot me. I've been getting a LOT less reviews than usual, so I might just let this stuff taper off I guess. 

Ironhide: well...maybe if you updated MORE OFTEN?!

DMK: I would, but school's a pain at the moment... Once I'm on vacation though, I should be fine.

Inferno: well then, all who read this, REVIEW! You're DAMAGING HER DWINDLING SELF CONFIDENCE IF YOU DONT! .!!

Ironhide: Pleeeeeeease? ::makes a puppy-dog face as best he can::

DMK: n.n;;; ::shoves them both out of the way:: ignore them...I'll...just see you next time I update!


	6. Romance at Last

DMK: Yargh! ...This fic's plotline is moving WAAAY too fast... T-T;; I need ideas for fillers... HELP! Anyone with ideas, tell me! .

Windracer: ::blinks:: is it that chapter yet?

DMK: ... one of them, anyways... -.-;;

Windracer: n.n!! Yay! But she is right about it moving a bit too quickly....so can anyone with decent ideas please help? We'll give you cookies! XD

DMK: _That'll_ buy them... .;; alright, this author's note has taken far too long...so read on! P.S: To misticmonk, HOW DID YOU GUESS WHAT HAPPENS?! ...oh, wait, you _hoped_ they did that... well...uhh, wish granted! n.n;; Now go, read, and be merry!

* * *

Chapter 7

Wheeljack's personal log

_"It's been almost three weeks since I joined the Autobots. Missions have been dry, nothing's happened...Except I still have Hotshot breathing down my neck... I wish he and I could just put that stuff aside! There's no need, right? Aside from that...the others are tolerable. Even the younger mech I almost condemned in that factory fire isn't as contemptuous towards me as Hotshot still is. And Windracer... how can she trust me so freely? I tried to kill her who knows how many times and she's the one sticking up for me when Hotshot gets on my back... Then there's Raider... the poor thing... Though, I think I'm actually becoming attatched to him. Windsheer says I have a bit to learn in the ways of caretaking, but I'm getting better... Maybe... if he goes unclaimed..."_

- - - - - - -

Raider's young cries echoed down the desolate hallway where he roomed with Wheeljack.

"Come now, that's enough," The older mech said to the young one tersely, holding him away at arms' length uncomfortably.

But the infant continued to cry.

Walking down a darkened hallway, Windracer heard the noise and followed it to the source, the ex-con's room, where she saw Wheeljack having quite a hard time trying to calm the black and silver baby Bot.

"Settle down," Wheeljack quipped, a little less than harshly. "Crying will get you nowhere." His patience was obviously growing thin.

As the baby continued to wail, the mech took notice of the small pair of hands that picked Raider out of his own. Wheeljack brought his face upward, and he came optic-to-optic with Windracer's pale gray metal face.

"You're doing it all wrong," She said to him quietly, but was heard over the din of Raider's fussing. "Watch me."

The tall mech looked on as she brought the crying 'bot close to her chestplate, with his tiny head resting above where her collarbone would be (if she were human still). "Shhh, there, there, Raider, you're okay…" She crooned to him, in a voice that seemed, to Wheeljack, as smooth as velvet.

Wheeljack's face changed to something of surprise, as Raider settled down and nestled into Windracer's chestplate, sticking his thumb into his mouth and looking rather content.

"See?" Windracer said to the mech softly. "You HAVE to be gentle with him, okay?" He nodded absently, watching Raider look about the room with that infantile curiosity. "Good. Then you try." She continued in a smug, yet friendly manner, moving a bit closer to Wheeljack and hefting Raider up a little.

The little Transformer noticed this, and his optics started to well with small tears yet again. Wheeljack observed this tentatively, turning apprehensive quickly. Then Raider was handed to him, and, as the older mech had feared, he started to cry once again. 'Jack slightly recoiled from the sudden outburst, and looked to Windracer for help. But, wearing a self-satisfied grin, she folded her arms across her chest and shook her head simply, not doing a thing. Wheeljack looked back down at Raider, and as told, brought him close to his chest, one hand resting gently on his back.

"Easy now," He said, his voice softening with each word. "No need to cry…"

And, much to Wheeljack's surprise, Raider began to settle down. Cooing softly, the young Transformer made himself comfortable and snuggled into his chest. Again, he stuck his thumb in his mouth, and began to power down his optics as sleep started to take hold.

Windy smiled. "There you go… Now ya have the hang of it."

The mech, still looking down at Raider, mumbled shyly. "But you make it look so much easier…"

"Ah…well…uhh…" The former human was caught off-guard. "Never really thought about that…as a human I hated little kids. I could've sworn they conspired and plotted my ultimate downfall…"

'Jack took this seriously, and stared. "Human children do such things?"

"Oh no, no, no, no… that was…a figure of speech. I just didn't get along with them…But this little guy…" She looked down to Raider, her smile growing fond. "He doesn't mind being in my company…kinda feels cool…like I'm important again…"

Wheeljack nodded quietly not really understanding, but kept his optics trained on the small mech in his arms. "I… feel strange…"

"Oh yeah? How?"

Wheeljack cupped one of his hands on Raider's back as he shifted around gently. "I don't know how to describe it… but this little one is changing me…" He trailed off, noticing that the said baby bot was sound asleep.

Windracer thought about this for a while.

"And so are you," he added more to himself.

Her head shot up. "…Come again?"

Wheeljack looked down. "I… I said that you and Raider are changing me… In a good way though…"

She was plunged further into a thoughtful state. "I'm not sure…but it reminds me of the type of feeling I used to have around Hotshot… Then again… it's different. Deeper, even…"

The femme furrowed her brow in more thought. She knew exactly what he was describing to her, but why was it that he couldn't identify it? "Maybe… all these messed up feelings are because of what's left of your Decepticon programming…?"

His head snapped up suddenly, as if an imaginary light bulb went off inside his mainframe. "Yes! That could be it! I probably have to get rid of it if I'm to make heads or tails of what I feel…"

"RedAlert oughta be able to help you out in that department…" She trailed off, her focus averting to the sleeping mech in his arms.

"Yes…" he agreed, not really focusing on the words, not really knowing what else to say to her. She tied his tongue and made his circuits overprocess… what was wrong with this picture?

"You want me to take him?"

Wheeljack snapped out of his revere and brought his optics up to her face once more. "Come again?"

"Raider. You look a little preoccupied at the moment, and I'd take him offa your hands."

"Oh… It's fine. I'm just thinking…"

"Again? What about?"

He looked down to Raider, shyness and shame being the predominant reason, and uttered, "You."

Windracer looked a bit surprised at this, and would be blushing if she were still human. The femme was at a loss for words right then.

"Y-you see… I don't know why… but you're one of the reasons I came back to the Autobots…"

"I am…?" She stammered, still a bit stupefied.

He nodded softly, still avoiding optic-contact with her. "Yes… Like I said, You and the little one are changing me…"

Her mind went into overdrive, processing all of this intently, but was interrupted when she caught Wheeljack stand and walk toward her out of the corner of her optics. Silently, Raider was lowered into her arms, and the young Autobot didn't even notice this switch. After making sure the little one was situated, Windy looked up to Wheeljack's teal blue optics. For once, he smiled in return, and she smiled back. Windy had long ago taken a seat on the mech's recharge bed, but the owner of that bed was standing over them, watching the two other occupants in the room contentedly.

For a moment, Wheeljack felt a new feeling, and acted on it almost instantaneously. He reached down and balanced her chin on his index of his left hand, stooped to her level, and softly connected their lips together. Rearing back up slowly and gently, and placing his other free arm around her waist, he brought her to her feet, the kiss not broken. He tightened his grip on her instinctively, bringing their bodies closer together, but stayed mindful of the young Autobot that was between the two. As softly as it had begun, they parted, both of them dazed and content. Suddenly, Wheeljack realized the implications, and he stepped back, his optics wide with fluster and shock. "Windracer, I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"Oh, just settle down." She chided albeit commandingly. "…and do that again."

Wheeljack seemed just a tad surprised for a moment, but then his optics softened, and gladly gave the femme her request. But, only a second or two after they had brought themselves together again, Raider decided to awaken, and he gave a little squeak of a yawn. The two broke apart suddenly, and brought their optics down to the small mech. Despite having been interrupted, the two smiled at the bot's antics.

"Have a nice nap, pipsqueak?" Wheeljack asked, bemused, which resulted in the said baby bot laughing aloud with similar amusement. Still giggling in an adorable and childish manner, he reached out to him with his stubby hands, as if requesting that he hold him. Windy caught onto this, and gently set the baby back in his arms.

"Well," She said with seeming finality. "Guess he really likes you now…"

'Jack looked down at the little mech, who was running his tiny hands over the large scar that crossed his chest with pure awe and curiosity. "I'm beginning to think you're right."

As soon as silence had taken full hold of the three Transformers in the room, it was suddenly interrupted by Raider. He quickly tried to throw his arms around the larger mech's chest, only being partially successful in that regard, and then exclaimed one word at the top of his lungs. "Daddy!"

The black and gold Transformer's jaw dropped, and he stared, optics wide down at him. Dazed, he looked back up at Windracer. "Did… he just… Call me what I think he did?"

She nodded with a similar amount of surprise, watching Raider rub his cheek into Wheeljack's chest affectionately and coo 'daddy' under his breath once again. "Wow… guess he really _does_ like you…" Then, spontaneously, broke into a tiny fit of giggles, which flustered Wheeljack all the more. "Hee hee hee hee! Looks like Raider's found himself a papa!" She began teasingly, breaking into laughter seconds later. "How cute! Hahahhaha!"

And as if the situation seemed unable to become more uncomfortable, it did, when Raider pointed his finger at the teasing femme.

"M-mama!"

Stopping her laughs with a sharp gasp, she froze suddenly, staring at him with shock and fluster. She then looked up at the other adult Transformer, stunned. At this, Wheeljack couldn't help but chuckle. "I guess he likes the _both_ of us…"

She was still rather embarrassed and shocked. "…Obviously…"

Raider clapped his hands, looking up at them both, completely oblivious to the fact that both Windracer and Wheeljack were rather uncomfortable now. He giggled lightly with a broad smile on his face. Windy then reached out and touched his cheek gently. "Looks like you want to have some fun, huh?"

The toddler smiled all the more and bobbed his head up and down, nodding. He then looked straight up at Wheeljack, who was watching him quietly. The two older Transformers exchanged glances, and both took a seat on Wheeljack's recharge bed. Windy began to teach him hand games, as the former Decepticon watched curiously. As minutes passed, Raider continued to have his fun, simply enjoying having his surrogate 'parents' in his company. And, unwittingly, he was bringing the two closer together. After a few more minutes of playing, Raider yawned again and fell asleep not soon after.

Taking every step with the utmost care, Wheeljack set Raider down on a recharge crib, large enough for him, and then turned back to Windracer.

She smiled at him a bit mischievously. "Now…where were we?"

He stepped toward her, and wrapped his arms around the femme's waist, and pulled her close. "Right, here, if I do believe…"

TBC

* * *

DMK…Ha! Like? No like? …tell me. I'm usually good with writing romance, but now its just this junk… ;; oh well. Please don't flame it… Bye bye now. Me go. 

Wheeljack: Do you always have to leave out details?! I was getting into that!!

DMK: Um, I'm going to leave that up to the readers' imagination…and NO, they don't do the heeby-jeeby…

Wheeljack: Damn! o.o;; I uh…mean…oh, that's too bad… or something… ::coughs uncomfortably and scoots away from attention::

DMK…wow. Just wow. Okay, now that Wheeljack's proven he's very very wrong in the head, I think I'll leave… REVIEW! PLEASE! n.n;;;


	7. Interesting Information

DMK: Wooo! POSITIVE RESPONSE! I LOVE POSITIVE RESPONSE!! ::dances with happiness:: And since I do need filler-age… THANK YOU ALAEYA FOR THE IDEA! I'm going to do that! Even though the 'Cons just think Wheeljack was captured or something… so yeah… Here we go!

Windracer: Woo-hoo!!

Wheeljack: ::sniffling off in the corner:: T-T I'm not a perv...really I'm not...

Windracer: O.o;; uhh... we know you're not Wheelie! We all love you! ::pounces on him:: :3

Wheeljack: n.n!! Well alrighty then! Lets get this story underway!

* * *

**Chapter Seven**

Wheeljack's personal log

_I still can't believe what I did...I let my emotions take hold when they shouldn't have! For the moment, we enjoyed it, but afterwards...well, I can hardly look at Windracer in the optics without the two of us feeling uncomfortable... I mean we're still good friends but if Hotshot were to catch wind of what happened, he would probably kill me in my recharge! He's so protective of her, Primus forbid he finds that out; I'm going to have to worry about the Megatron and the Decepticons soon enough and I don't need to worry about my own teammate... _

Decepticon Base, Moon

Megatron stomped about the Moon Base, frustrated, angry, and wondering what in the Pit was going on. Anyone that got in his way ended up in pieces, and unfortunately, Cyclonus was one of them.

"OWOWOW! Cut that out boss I didn't do anything wrong!!" He ducked and ran as Megs started taking pot-shots at him. "What'd I do this time?! Why in Primus' name are you mad at me?!"

"One of the best warriors of the team has now been M.I.A for weeks! His warp Transponder's not functioning and I can't pick up his energy signature. I HAVE A RIGHT TO BE ANGRY!"

Cyclonus didn't stop to talk it out with him, instead he continued running down the dingy halls until he came into the throne room, where many of the others were just hanging about. He tripped and fell, landing on his face, and found the Starsaber's glowing point pressed into his back. "When I give you an order, Cyclonus, you do not question it, understand? I'm preoccupied with Wheeljack's disappearance and I don't have time for your shenanigans!"

_'All I did was say 'Why?'...' _he thought in his mind, not moving. "Y-Yes sir, I won't do that again, promise!"

"Good," He grumbled, removing the Starsaber. Silently, he began to retreat, Thrust at his heels.

"Uh, Megatron sir, if I can help just-Agh!!" The coneheadded Decepticon found himself thrown hard into a wall by his leader's clenched fist, never even finishing his sentence.

"I do not need your help, _Squidhead_, just keep your trap shut like the others and do what you're told. And nobody bother me for the rest of the day, I'm going to get my recharge." Megatron resumed his pace, not even looking back.

Sideways grinned from his spot in the darkest corner, undetected. _'My, my, my... he's in quite the mood, isn't he? Heh... I think it's time I step in...'_

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Demolisher stared in surprise at Starscream, who was sitting on Megatron's throne casually while Megs was in his quarters. The seeker had just pitched a seemingly outrageous idea at them. "You...you really think he was captured?"

"Those conniving Autobots probably did take him, heck, he might even be decomissioned right now," Cyclonus said, rubbing his sore head absent-mindedly. "Bet you dollars to brain chips they interrogated him, too."

"Should we tell Megatron?"

"If you want your head blown off go right ahead, but I'm not going near him until he cools off."

"Tidal Wave say go find out, go make sure," The huge hulking 'Con said. "No false alarm."

"Hey, Tidal Wave's got a point! We need a scout or something!" Cyclonus agreed. "But who'd be nuts enough to go down to the Autobot's base?" First Starscream, then Tidal Wave, then Demolisher, followed by Thrust, brought their attention to the helicopter. "Oh, no, nonononono! I am NOT going down there!"

"Then I suppose you have a better candidate, Cyclonus?" Thrust questioned. "I'm all auds."

_'Leave that to me.'_ Everyone's head snapped up in surprise at the voice, and they looked about.

"Who's there?! Show yourself!" Starscream jumped to his feet, both of his wing swords at the ready. When he noticed the grinning pink optics in a dark corner, he grumbled. "Oh, Sideways. I thought we killed you."

_'I told you I'd be back.'_ He said coolly. _'Now do you want someone to infiltrate the Autobot's base for you or not?'_

The Decepticons looked to each other. "What's the catch? Why should we even be discussing this matter with a virus like you?"

_'Because I'm the only one who can get in and out of there safely. Unless you all want to go there yourselves and risk your skidplates...'_

"No, no, I suppose not. But this can not be traced back to us," Thrust broke in wearily. "You tip Megatron off yourself if it comes down to it."

The Virus grinned with his optics, getting Cyclonus and Demolisher to shudder. _'Fine by me.'_ And seconds later, the two optics faded away into the darkness.

Tidalwave frowned. "Me no like this... Sideways shifty."

Thrust wasn't much happier. "Yes, I know, but if we want to get Megatron out of that foul mood and find out where our comerade has gone, I don't think we have much of a choice..."

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Axalon Hangar Deck, Autobot Base, Earth

"Hey, uh, Windracer...you seem to be pretty friendly with our newest member," Smokescreen said as they both worked on the half-finished Autobot ship.

The femme's shoulders slouched, her face turning a bit red. "What makes you say that?"

"Well you stick up for him all the time...you'd think he could do that himself..."

"Listen, he's not the best at socializing. You wouldn't let Hotshot tear him apart the way he does, would ya?"

Smokescreen paused from his work, looking thoughtful. He hadn't really heard the way he spoke to him, but had gotten the rough idea from Windy and Sideswipe's conversations. "Eh...now that you say it like that...I guess not. He ain't a bad kid, really, just a bit confused."

"So you'd trust him?"

"...Well he saved your hide once, and Raider's too. I don't know about anyone else, but I think that makes him trustworthy."

Windracer sighed as she worked some metal paneling onto one side of the ship's hull. "Wish Hotshot'd be that trusting of him."

"Give the kid a break, he'll earn his trust soon enough."

"But Hotshot's been saying that-"

"He said a lot of things and sometimes they happen anyway. I mean Sideswipe's not lashing out at him all the time is he?"

"No...but then again Sideswipe has a decent head on his shoulders..." She grumbled again, still fuming slightly at Hotshot, and retuned to building the ship. So caught up in her work, she didn't seem to hear the airlock door to the hangar bay open, nor notice Wheeljack walk in. He looked about silently.

"Heh, speak a' the devil..." Smokescreen said under his breath, looking halfway over his shoulder. Windy's head snapped up and she, too, glanced to the door.

"Well hey Wheeljack!...you come to help us work on this ship or what?" Windracer added the last bit a bit teasingly.

He looked up at the giant ship a bit thoughtfully. "I was...out here working on it a bit this morning..."

"Aha!" Smokescreen jumped in. "So you're the one who did all of that work on it! Nice job, kid. Wish we all had your work ethic."

Wheeljack smirked a little at the friendly conversation, feeling a bit more at home. "It helps me clear my mind, tinkering away at stuff, that is."

"Huh...so then what brings you here if you're not comin' to work?" Windy put her hands on her hips after setting her tool down.

"I was just...wandering around and came across you...So you, uh...up for a round of target practice?" He asked shyly, unsure of himself.

She grinned at him. "I was just going to ask you the same thing. Of course I would." With a slow, calculated move, she linked her arm in his, his face flushing with color. "C'mon, let's go. Plus I think we got some things to talk about, anyways."

For a minute he couldn't find his voice, but then he smiled. "Right."

Smokescreen bit his lip, grinning to himself, and quietly returned to his work on the ship. As he sautered some paneling onto it, he chuckled. _'Oh yeah...they got it in for each other...'_

The two Autobots left the hangar bay and walked down the hall, arm-in-arm, oblivious to the pair of optics watching from in the rafters. Sideways. He grinned to himself, chuckling deep in his throat. _'Well, well well... Megatron will be most interested in this...'_ With another nasty, echoing cackle, the two optics faded away into the darkness.

TBC

* * *

DMK: HA! The plot thickens! 

Windracer: -.-;; wasn't that supposed to be a filler?

DMK: ...well...it...kinda is... and the next one is too! This one's where Megs gets tipped off and such. So yeah. ::to the readers:: but even though it's a filler-ish thing can you still review? Pleeeeease?

PS: The reason Sideways is speaking in italics is because he's still in his virus form, ya know, after he got slagged in "Detection", so he sounds wierd... and yeah... so enjoyish!


	8. An Accidental Intrusion

DMK: Alright, glad my first filler wasn't too bad from the response I got, so, here's number two. I think... ENJOY! AND REVIEW! XD

* * *

**Chapter Eight**

Decepticon Base, The Moon

"Are you ABSURD!?" Megatron roared at the holographic image of Sideways, which stood in the center of his room, grinning. "You have a lot of gall to come back here, you traitorous virus!"

_'I know the implications, Megatron, but you'd be interested in what I've managed to dig up on your missing soldier...'_

Megatron lowered his sword from hacking at the transparent Transformer, and set his chin. "Go on."

_'It seems...that Wheeljack's back with the Autobots...he didn't kill that small Transformer you found in the warp gate, either. He and that female Autobot are actually taking care of it.'_

"You lie," The Decepticon leader grated plainly. "I would have picked up on his energy signature by now."

Sideways chuckled. _'Hate to burst your bubble, Megs, but he had your tracker removed. And since there's been no Minicon activity, there's been no reason for him to leave the base at all.'_

He snarled. "If you are leading me on, Sideways, I will rip you in half and then feed you to the Sharkticons of the planet Quintessa, and then jettison whatever's left into the sun! Are we clear?"

This seemed to please the virus, and he smirked again. _'Then it's a date, Megatron, but I assure you I am not lying.'_

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Autobot Base, Earth

The last ceramic target fell to the ground in shambles, and both Autobots in the room exchanged grins.

"You know I got that one," Windy said confidently.

Wheeljack answered in response: "As if, I had that one before you even fired!"

She sighed, slouching her shoulders in fake resignation. "Okay, fine, if you say so." Placing her weapon back on the wall rack, she glanced back to her friend and noticed a somewhat thoughtful expression on his face. "Hey...what's wrong?"

He looked down a little, uneasy. "Just...well, what happened a few days ago... I can't stop thinking about it..."

"Bet that was the best time you've had since you got here, huh?" Windy said with a wink.

His face flushed and he looked away. "I...I can't deny that, heh...but... I feel so out of place now... Almost...uncomfortable..." The mech had a tough time forming his state of mind into words.

"Well...that is because you, my friend, need to lighten up." With a grin, Windracer walked forward until she was less than a half-arm's length away. She got up on tiptoe. With a slow, calculated motion, she laced her arms around his neck and tightened her grip, bringing them both close.

Wheeljack's face flushed an even deeper red as his spark beat quickened, his body stiffening from the uneasyness. But once he felt the femme's lips softly brush his own, he relaxed, and embraced her in return. At that time he hefted Windracer up off the ground slightly with his strong arms. They parted for a moment, nose-to-nose, looking into each other's optics, and then continued kissing once more.

Until Sideswipe walked in, that is. "Hey Windy, I was wondering where you-AHHH!" He stumbled backwards, covering his optics with his hands.

Wheeljack was startled from the shout, and dropped Windracer from his arms by accident. She landed on her rear end hard. "Sideswipe!"

"I'm sorry! Sorry! I had no idea that I was interrupting anything!"

Wheeljack looked ready to run, having been caught in the act, red-handed, but Windracer sighed and got up slowly. "It's alright, we shouldn't have been doing that in here..."

The first thing that ran through Wheeljack's almost panicked mind was, _'Oh great, he's going to tell Hotshot about this for sure! I'm as good as dead!'_. He was put at ease however, when Windy's voice cut through his thoughts.

"Sideswipe...you didn't see ANYTHING, alright? This never happened, nobody can know. Especially Hotshot."

The young mech eyed Wheeljack nervously and nodded. "Yep, didn't see a thing, Hotshot won't hear a word of it!" Fortunately he respected his adopted sister's privacy. That, and he didn't want to find out what else Wheeljack could do to him...

She sighed in a bit of relief. "Good... He'd hang us if he found out that way..."

Sideswipe scratched his nose out of anxiety, glacing at the two Transformers once or twice, Windy shifted from one foot to the other, looking down, while Wheeljack averted his gaze to the nearest wall. All three of them had not the slightest clue as to what to say.

After a few more moments of uncomfortable silence, Wheeljack spoke up. "Well...I uh... have to get back... Windsheer can manage Raider for only so long, you know..."

Windy gave a giggle. "Yeah, alright, sure. Tell the little guy hi for me."

He smiled and nodded. "Sure thing..." With a short, quick movement, he gave the femme a quick peck on the cheek and then headed to check on Raider.

The female Transformer watched him leave, her face flushed a soft pink. Sideswipe, meanwhile, gave an uncomfortable cough. "Uhh...sis?"

She turned to look at him fully. "Yeah?"

"I'm really sorry about walking in on you like that...I didn't know you two were..."

"It's alright, you gotta admit the look on your face was hilarious..."

He scratched his cheek giving a nervous chuckle. "Uh, yeah, heh..."

"Wait... so...you're not mad about it though? Didn't you not like Wheeljack?" She tilted her head, confused.

Her 'brother' slouched over. "To tell ya the truth...I was more scared of him than angry... But since I saw him taking care of Raider the way he does and now this-...I guess I can come to terms with it... The only thing I'm worried about is how you're going to tell Hotshot...I mean he already suspects something from the way you two hang out..."

She sighed. "Might as well do it now... I should come clean now before he finds out himself..."

"Well... I'll come with ya, okay?"

"Alright then!" She grabbed his arm and started off in a small jog, Sideswipe in tow. "Let's jet!"

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Decepticon Base, The Moon

Angered by him, Megatron turned halfway around and planted his fist into a nearby wall. "Then where's my proof?!"

Sideways looked over to a nearby computer console, which flickered on seemingly by itself. Once Megs brought his attention to it, the virus seemed to go still as scenes began to play on the screen. There was Wheeljack, busy constructing the Axalon ship beside several Autobots; Wheeljack, in a target range alongside Blurr and some others; Wheeljack, sitting next to his Minicon holding that small infant Transformer; and Wheeljack, walking down a hallway, arm-in-arm with that blasted femme. Megatron snarled angrily, again planting his fist into the nearest wall. "Arrrgh! He will pay for this betrayl!"

_'You want a chance to execute him, yes?'_ Sideways drawled calmly, watching his reaction with amusement.

"I would like nothing more than to take the Requiem Blaster to him right now," Megs spat back.

_'Well...give the Autobots a reason to come out of their cave. Take over a human power plant, attack a city, whatever you want; it'll flush them out. You'll have your chance to get even with him.'_

Megatron turned, looking at Sideways thoughtfully. "Why did you tell me this? I killed you."

_'Oh, I shouldn't let a little thing like death get in the way of helping the Decepticons, now should I? Plus this news was just SO important, I had to share it with SOMEONE who'd appreciate it...'_

He grunted at his suck-up act. "Yes, well, you have my gratitude, but I will not fully trust you after what you did."

_'And I don't expect you to...'_ Sideways responded. _'But you know where to find me when you need information...'_ His voice trailed off eerily as he began to fade away. First his limbs, then his body, then his head, until finally, those two piercing optics disappeared with a low and malicious chuckle.

Confused, ill-at-ease, angry, but mostly angry, Megatron again created a new dent in his wall, glaring at the images of Wheeljack with disdain. _'This is far from over,'_ He thought in the back of his mind. _'You are in it knee-deep now, Wheeljack...'_

TBC

* * *

DMK: Dun dun duuuuuun! There ya have it! My second of the two filler chapters! Now I can move on without feeling guilty! XD 

Windracer: Well, almost. YOU HAVE TO ALL REVIEW IT OR ELSE SHE WONT POST ANYTHING! .

Wheeljack: ::has red lipstick kiss-marks all over his face:: YEAH! . ::DMK and all the readers stare at Wheeljack, who blinks in surprise:: O.o;; uhh... I'm going to go now! ::grabs Windracer around her waist and runs off::

DMK: O.O;; well then... uh... okay... review...?

And PS: Fighting in the next chap, Promise! For some reason I want to do a Hotshot vs. Wheeljack scene... and have somebody jump in halfway through... I don't know... if someone could help me tie it in between this chapter and the next one where it could happen, please do... ::begs:: PLLLLEEEEAASSSE!!!


	9. A Fateful Mistake

DMK: ::standing in the middle of a lighted ring with a cheering crowd surrounding all four sides:: Alright peeps, its time for the main event! (not really...) In dis cornah, weighing in at... however much he weighs, HOTSHOT! ::he comes out with boxing gloves on:: And in dat cornah, weighing in at whatever he weighs in at, WHEELJACK! ::also comes out in boxing gloves::

Prime: ::standing between the two wearing a transformer-sized referee outfit:: Alright, I want a good, clean fight, no hits below the belt, and no biting... _Hotshot_...

Hotshot: n.n;;;

::DINGDINGDING!::

DMK: Les' get it ON! And enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter 9**

Rec Room, Autobot Base

"You did WHAT?!" Hotshot had risen from his chair and was looking down at Windracer, stunned. The female Transformer just remained silent, slightly hunched over, trying to ignore Hotshot's outburst. Eventually, after tense seconds, he sat back down, still very mad. "Now he's gone _way_ too far…"

"It was just two kisses Hotshot, nothing more!" She had neglected the few heated moments after the second kiss, or the events in the target room that Sideswipe walked in on, but she thought doing so would make things a lot less complicated.

"Oh right, sure. He saves your life once and he thinks he can do what he pleases with you."

"Hey, it's not like he forced himself on me…it just happened…" She defended weakly.

"Well if that 'just happened', you'd better be more careful," Hotshot snapped back. "We don't want _two_ baby Transformers running around the base…"

The femme nearly tackled him to the ground out of anger and embarassment at the implications. "I'M NOT THAT IRRESPONSIBLE!"

"Well, ya coulda fooled me…"

Windracer's face contorted to an angry scowl. "Jeez, what is with you?! What do you have against Wheeljack? He's trying to be your friend again, but you won't let him!"

"Yeah, well, let him keep trying. It'll never work." Hotshot said, turning his nose up into the air adamantly.

Sideswipe had been sitting quietly listening to the two argue. "Well come on bro, he can't be all bad…He was an Autobot before. Sure he tried to kill us before but even _I'm_ starting to get used to the guy…"

"Not you too!" Hotshot felt betrayed. "You can't trust him as far as you can throw him! You just can't!" He had risen from his seat and was racing away from the room. He really needed to blow off some steam.

"Bro!" Sideswipe began, getting up too. He started after him, but he found Windracer's dragon tail gripping onto his arm. "Wha-?"

She sighed. "Let him be. It'll take him some time to get used to this, and I think we should just give him his space…"

- - - - - - - - - -

As Wheeljack walked down the hallway to go tend to Raider, still a bit befuddled from earlier, he felt himself slammed into the wall, hard. Whatever knocked him there, kept him pinned. Grunting, he saw Hotshot, standing over him.

"You. Me. Outside. _Now_." He said in a cold voice.

"Hotshot? Wha-?"

"-Now!" With a shove, Wheeljack found himself walking towards the Lookout, his very rude-tempered former friend behind him. When he looked over his shoulder, he noticed Hotshot had his laser pistol out and pressed against him, and was shoved forward yet again.

- - - - - - - - - -

"Hey Windy...um, this just might be me... but, where do ya figure Hotshot ran off to? He's not here..." Sideswipe and Windracer had just walked past the target range, and their angry friend was nowhere to be found.

She sighed. "He could be out for a drive, maybe? I know he wouldn't track Wheeljack down so he could-" she stopped. "...would he?"

They stared at one another for several minutes, and with nothing said between them, they tore down the hallway to the control room. Sideswipe was the first to skid in, and ran to a computer only seconds later. Scavenger and Optimus were nearby. They stared at the two, puzzled.

"And just what's the rush?" Prime asked calmly. "You two look like the Decepticons are invading."

"We need to find Hotshot," Windracer said hastily. "Me and Sideswipe think he's fighting with Wheeljack right now."

Scavenger's face became a bit more serious. "What for?"

The two younger Autobots exchanged glances, and Windracer mumbled something.

"What was that?" He asked again.

She clenched her fists and repeated. "I said I..." but again regressed into mumbles.

"I can't understand a word you're saying..."

"I SAID, I-"

"She made out with Wheeljack a couple days ago and now Hotshot's jealous of him and wants to get him off her back for good." Sideswipe answered plainly.

"YOU DID WHAT?!" The femme instantly cringed, and shot a glare to Sideswipe.

"I did what he said I did, alright?! That's not the point! The point is, that Hotshot's probably off antagonizing Wheeljack, and not like he usually does, either. He looked ready to-"

HELP! Windsheer came tearing into the room at that very moment in his miniature jet mode. Help help help help HELP!

Transforming back into robot mode, he slammed into Windracer's chest and clung to her. She blinked her optics in surprise. "Uhh...what-?"

Wheeljack...Hotshot... Outside... Fighting... NOW! We have GOT to help him!

Windracer looked to Prime and Scavenger, with an "I told you so," expression on her face.

Optimus sighed heavily, but knew the direness of the situation. "Alright, let's go break them up. Scavenger, comlink Jetfire. We might need him to put Hotshot in isolation overnight to get him to cool down..."

"Yes sir!"

Windsheer transformed back into his jet mode, and Windy and Sideswipe took off next, with Prime trailing right behind. _'Primus, Hotshot, why on Earth are you doing this?!'_

- - - - - - - - - -

With a cry, Wheeljack landed hard on the ground. Hotshot stood over him, his fists clenched. "Come on, you coward! Fight me!" Raising his gun, he shouted again angrily. "Get up and fight!"

As he fired the round, Wheeljack rolled out of the way and scrambled to his feet. He dove for the cover of a rock, and felt a laser round clip his shoulder and punch a hole right through his armor. "Agh!" That was when he knew Hotshot's gun was no longer set on 'damage'. It was more than likely set to 'kill'.

"Come on! I know you can fight me! Or are you waiting for Windy to come rescue you like always, huh?!"

He scowled to himself upon realizing this, but kept his head down. "Why are you so bitter, Hotshot?! What have I done?!"

"What do you THINK you did, Wheeljack!?" He ran forward, shooting the boulder he was hidden behind in hopes of destroying it. "You signed your own death warrant the second you put your hands on Windy!" He jumped up and over that rock, landing in front of Wheeljack. Turning around, he aimed his gun at him once again.

"So _that's_ what this is about?!" He glared up at his former friend. "You're jealous of me?!" This was obscene! He was going nuts because he was JEALOUS OF HIM?!

Hotshot scowled and flung himself down on Wheeljack, letting his fists fly. The former Decepticon could do nothing but cover his face as the blows rained down.

- - - - - - - - - -

Windy, Sideswipe, Scavenger, and Optimus came running to the lookout just in time to watch Hotshot as he pounced on Wheeljack and began to beat him senseless.

"Hotshot!"

He looked up, a bit surprised, which gave Wheeljack the chance to give Hotshot a harsh uppercut to the jaw. The force of the blow sent him flying off, which allowed the other mech to get to his feet. Hotshot staggered away, holding his face, giving Wheeljack the chance to land a roundhouse to his flank. It sent him to the ground. Straddling him, Wheeljack unleashed his own flurry of punches upon the yellow Transformer.

"Come on, Hotshot! Why aren't _you_ fighting back, now, huh?!" Hook, uppercut, cross, jab, cross cross, uppercut, hook! After 'tenderizing' his face, he pulled out one of his clubs, and brought it down on Hotshot, swinging it hard.

Windy had taken enough, and was sliding down the elevated hill towards the skirmish. "Windracer, no!" Prime reached forward in hopes of stopping her, but she was too far gone. Once down the hill, she ran straight for them.

"Wheeljack! Stop!" Moments before the blunt object would have knocked Hotshot unconscious, Windracer grabbed his arm and stopped it cold. "Leave him..." she said in a softer tone, loosening her grip.

Wheeljack looked to the stunned and injured Hotshot in surprise, then at Windracer. "What...? What happened?"

"You kicked his rear end good, Wheelie...but that's enough, okay?"

Still shocked at what he'd done, he nodded and slowly clambered off Hotshot, who was glaring at him with contempt. "Okay..." Still with one of the femme's hands on his arm, he turned and began to head back to the base to accept his punishment.

Scavenger sighed in relief from up on the lookout. "Well, that was fairly painless... I was afraid things would get worse..." Prime nodded in response.

Windracer was the only one who noticed Hotshot raise his blaster up and aim it at Wheeljack's backside. "Wheeljack! MOVE IT!" She shoved him out of the way quickly, and took the laser round herself. Unfortunately, Hotshot's gun was still on 'kill'.

"Aaagh!" With a guttral cry, the femme hit the ground on her side, holding the gaping hole in her left flank with one trembling hand.

Everybody froze. Wheeljack could do nothing but stare in utter shock. "W...Windracer... no..."

He then brought his gaze up to Hotshot, and his anger flared. He'd tear him apart! "This is all your fault!" Running forward, he drew one of his clubs again, but found Scavenger standing between them both.

"NOT now, Wheeljack. We have more to worry about at the moment!"

Scowling, he turned and made a mad dash for the fallen female Transformer. His face softened as he reached her. Prime and Sideswipe were already there. "Windracer!" He knelt down beside her and gently took her into his arms. "Please, say something..."

She had a rueful grin on her face, and forced a laugh. "I'm...I'm okay, it's just a scratch..."

"Scratch my skidplate," Scavenger said from where he was standing. "I'm contacting RedAlert. We've got to get her to the medbay NOW."

Hotshot watched from where he was still sitting on the ground. He'd just wounded the person he was trying to protect from Wheeljack! He could never show his face at the base again! He got up slowly and began to backstep away from the scene, too mortified to take his optics away from it. 'Windy... I'm sorry... I never meant to...' He turned suddenly, shutting his optics, and began to run. Hotshot didn't know where, he just had to get away from his mistake.

"Bro!" Sideswipe started after him, but Scavenger grabbed his shoulder and shook his head in the 'no' fashion. Unhappily, he looked back to Windracer, who was slipping into stasis lock right in Wheeljack's arms.

Even though Windy had her hand pressed over the wound, she felt herself growing weaker as circ fluid trickled between her fingers. She took in ragged, quick breaths. Gently, Wheeljack took his free hand and put his over hers, looking utterly defeated. "W-Windy...please, hang on, we're going to get you out of here..." he sighed halfway through his sentence. "I'm sorry...I shouldn't have fought back..."

"Nah...'cause it'd be you on the ground... and not me..." she gave him a weak smile as reassurance. "And...don't be... so darn...dramatic... I'm not gonna die... I did that once already and it sucks..." She raised up her free hand and touched the side of his face, but then jerked it away as she groaned and cringed in pain.

Wheeljack's face fell at this. "Windracer!" He watched helplessly as her optics powered down and she went limp in his arms. The femme had gone into stasis lock.

Optimus and Sideswipe watched this almost mournfully, not thinking of their next move, until Scavenger broke the silence. "Prime...now."

The Autobot's leader nodded. "Lets get her to the medbay. We don't have much time..."

TBC

* * *

DMK: ::shakes fist:: darn you KatDrama, YOU'RE FREAKING PSYCHIC! That's exactly what I had in mind! Though I'm not too sure if I'll have Hotshot be taken hostage or not... hmm... ::thinks:: 

Wheeljack: T-T This is so dramatic...and sad!

DMK: It didn't seem so dramatic to me though... I can't write drama.... . blech...well, review people!


	10. Recovering

DMK: So ...yeah... sorry that was a cliffhanger. n.n;; I have a BAD habit of doing that... heh... so anyways... enjoy. I think Hotshot's going to get lost in the forest and start to waste away from his injuries or something and someone'll find him or something... I don't know... Anyway, here's just a note:

**Alayea**- You're right. A few minutes, a few moments, I have a habit of saying one thing and meaning another. A pretty common mistake from me, really... Glad you caught it, though, I'll edit it later.

**SaphireStars**- YOU'RE PSYCHIC TOO! XD That's exactly what will happen... in the threequel to this thing! ::Wheeljack can be heard "Woo-hoo"-ing in the background::

**Chiomon**- Nope, Hotshot's still good, but a bit misguided.

**The Crab**- Heh, yeah, I think I'll lay off the Wheelie-age for a while. I don't know, she'll just call him "Jack" or something. Also with the kill mode... it's there just in case, I guess, and maybe Hotshot was just so ticked off he wanted to use it. ::shrug:: It was a convinient plot device at the time...

**Goldenrod and KatDrama**- Still debating the whole "Hotshot as a Hostage" thing, after this chap you might think about reconsidering it. ::demented grin:: Mwahahaha...

**Cobalt, Ashana, Maria, and Hotshot94**- Glad you like my stuff, hope this chapter's good enough for you too! =D

Now that that's settled: Hope it's enjoyable! Even though it's all over the place, and to me I don't think it flows... .;;

* * *

**Chapter Ten**

The entire Autobot team, minus Hotshot, watched quietly from the observation deck as RedAlert worked furiously to repair Windracer. Even Rad, Carlos, and Alexis were looking down worriedly by Blurr's feet.

"Would someone MIND telling me WHY poor Windy has a hole in her stomach?!" Smokescreen had turned away from the scene, unable to watch much longer. He looked at Wheeljack, who still had a wounded shoulder and the said femme's circ fluid staining one of his white hands.

Alexis noticed the guilty and wounded expression on his face as well. "Wheeljack...what happened?"

He snapped out of his thoughts and looked down at her. Almost everyone's optics were trained on him now. "She and I...we did something that made Hotshot a bit jealous... and he got so protective of her that he went after me... And Windy jumped in to stop it...."

Blurr seemed a bit surprised. "And where is Hotshot now?"

"He ran off. We don't know where he went..." Wheeljack looked back down into the medical bay, his facial expression still showing much worry and guilt. He sighed. "I would've probably been better off letting him get what he wanted out of me..."

"Don't say that, man, standin' up for yourself was the right thing to do." Carlos said to him. "If anyone was in the wrong it was Hotshot..."

Wheeljack nodded vacantly, his optics still trained on the action below. Optimus, meanwhile, comlinked RedAlert over the P.A system. "So what's the prognosis? Anything we can celebrate?"

RedAlert sighed, not looking up from his work. "It could be better, but it could have been much worse. She lost a lot of circ Energon from the severed lines, so she's slightly anemic, if I were to put it into human terms. There's a lot of internal damage to her circuitry as well, so that might take some time to fix fully. I've got her stable, though, so other than that, she'll more than likely pull through."

There was a collective sigh of relief. Wheeljack smiled lightly to himself despite all his worry and guilt.

"Not to say that she won't have a long recovery ahead of her..." RedAlert added afterwards. "I just hope Hotshot's blaster didn't rip her wiring out at the seams or she might never be the same..."

"Thank you, Mr. Optimistic," Smokescreen grumbled, looking down at the felled Windracer again. "Poor kiddo..."

Prime, still rather quiet, gave a heavy sigh. "I think we should leave Red to his work... he's got it cut out for himself this time..."

Reluctantly they all agreed, and one by one they began to file out. Sideswipe turned to Optimus when he noticed Wheeljack was still standing at the glass, watching. "Should I-"

"Leave him," he told the younger mech softly. "You understand what they share."

With a nod, he and the rest of the Autobots headed back to their respective jobs somberly, all of them hoping in the back of their mind that Windracer would be alright.

- - - - - - - - - -

Night was falling. It had been the early sunset when the fight had ended. Now the sky was all manner of purples and darker blues, decorated by stars and clouds.

Hotshot ran. He didn't know where he was, all he knew was that he had to get away. Somewhere far away from the base and the guilt. He got away from the base, but the guilt was imprinted in his mind. The mental image of a wounded Windracer being cradled in a remorseful Wheeljack's arms was something he couldn't just forget. But oh, how he wanted to.

Deep in the forest, he gave up dodging trees and just began to knock them down, ignoring that they were in his way. His head still throbbed from the beating he sustained at Wheeljack's hands, and the occaisional trip over a fallen tree made things worse. He cleared several small streams, skirted a few meadows, and found himself at a ravine.

Maybe he should...no. It was a long gap, however. But the guilt and pain he felt was even more overpowering. He wanted to protect Windracer from Wheeljack, but what had he gone and done? Nearly killed her! And for what? Yes, Hotshot wanted to be with her, he loved her dearly, but she had no interest in him. They were only friends. And now even the friendship they shared was as good as gone.

He had made up his mind. Taking two steps back, he began to run forward. He jumped.

And fell. Shouting, he plummeted to the bottom, landing hard on his right side. His right arm was bent oddly behind him, and his right leg had no feeling. He groaned, and saw electricity crackle at the joints. His vision swirled, and he soon began to see double. It was then that Hotshot's world went dark.

- - - - - - - - - -

RedAlert sat back after many hours of work, looking down at the still-unconscious Windracer. Confident in his work, he gently put his good hand to her forehead. "I've done all I can for you, my friend...the rest is up to you..."

He looked up to the observation deck tiredly, and noticed Wheeljack. He was no longer standing, but was leaning up against the wall nearest the glass, sleeping at an uncomfortable angle. Giving a tiny smile at his little vigil, he took his hand away from Windy's face and retreated out of the medbay. He had to brief Optimus and the others on the situation, after all.

Up on the observation deck, Sideswipe walked in, cradling Raider. Windsheer had asked him to watch the tiny mech while he could take a break of his own, and so he did. He was practically his uncle, anyways. "Hey Wheeljack?"

The mech jolted awake from his spot on the floor. "Hnn?" Groggily, he looked to Sideswipe, and then noticed Raider in his arms. Remembering what had happened he then looked down into the medbay. RedAlert was no longer there, and he couldn't see the monitor's readouts. Could she have died?! "W-Windracer..."

"She's fine, Wheeljack," Sideswipe said as he walked over to him. "Red just finished repairing her."

"Can...Can I visit her?" He got to his feet and put one hand to the glass longingly, his spark still aching.

Sideswipe thought for a minute, trying to keep Raider from squirming out of his grip. "Red didn't say you couldn't..."

"Da!" The tiny mech called from the other's arms, reaching out for Wheeljack. Even the little one looked worried for some reason. Giving a smile, the elder relieved Sideswipe of his charge and scooped him into his own arms. He cuddled into him instantly, sticking his thumb into his mouth out of habit.

Sideswipe gave a little chuckle as this happened and was snapped out of it when Wheeljack spoke. "Thank you for watching him... I just forgot..."

"It's alright, you had a right to be here...plus I think he likes his uncle Sideswipe! Hehehe!" Cautiously, he reached out and tickled him under the chin, getting him to squeal happily and giggle.

'Jack grinned at this softly, then looked back down to the scene below. "Go on, Wheeljack." The younger mech insisted. "Windy needs you."

He nodded at this slightly and began a slow march out of the observation deck. "I will... and thank you for your help today, Sideswipe."

"Aww...don't mention it dude," He said sheepishly. Then, with a slight nudge; "Now go."

He grinned at the younger Autobot and left the deck, heading for the medbay with Raider in his arms.

- - - - - - - - - -

"Jetfire? Any sign of Hotshot?" Optimus' voice crackled to life over the shuttle's comlink.

"That's a negative, sir," he replied, hovering with the thrusters in his feet. "Though I can tell he's been here..." He had noticed the crude trail of downed trees leading away from the base.

"Keep looking," his leader ordered. "He's got to be out there somewhere."

"I read ya. Jetfire, over and out." Grumbling, he severed the link and tore away from the base, searching for the fugitive Transformer.

- - - - - - - - - -

Wheeljack walked quietly and reverently into the medbay, one arm busy holding Raider while the other hung loose at his side. The little Transformer looked around, confused as to why he was there. Until he noticed Windracer. Instantly he started to whimper and looked on in fear as they neared her. His small whimpers soon became soft, worried cries once they had reached the injured femme's bedside, and Wheeljack tried his best to calm him.

"Shhh, it's alright," He cooed softly as he rocked him in one arm. "Windy's just... taking a rest, she'll wake up..."

Still fussing quietly, he watched as his makeshift father reached out to the femme and caressed the side of her face. His expression was that of sorrow and worry, and so Raider began to reflect that as well. He buried his tiny face into Wheeljack's chest armor, too sad to look at Windracer any longer.

"Windy..." The elder mech whispered quietly. "I...I know you can't hear me... but don't die..."

Raider emitted a squealing sob and tried desperately to free himself from Wheeljack's arms. He wanted to touch his surrogate mom, to try and make her feel better, to try to wake her up. He looked up at 'Jack pleadingly, and the older one got an idea. Gently, he took Raider under his arms by both hands and set him down on Windracer's chest, his stubby legs straddling the much larger female. Raider was unable to support his body properly so he flopped forward. Now laying out on top of her, he reached his tiny hand to her cheek. Patting it with a childlike clumsiness, he tried to wake her up. After a few minutes of this gentle patting, Raider's hand just came to rest on the side of her cheek. His arm had just gotten too tired.

Drawing his arm back to his body, the child just laid on Windracer's chest. He was beginning to nod off to an uneasy sleep with a sorrowful expression on his face. Wheeljack bowed his head as he watched this, grudgingly coming to terms with the fact that Windy wasn't getting up anytime soon.

Then he saw a slender hand curl around Raider's back and remain there, rubbing it gently. He looked to Windracer's face, and saw her optics were half open and very dim.For a few moments she did nothing but stare straight up at the ceiling, right into the overhead lights. Once Raider stirred, however, she averted her gaze to him and gave a tiny, weak smile.

"W-Windracer..?" Wheeljack hardly moved as this happened, a bit more surprised than anything else.

Her dim optics closed slowly, and her head lolled to the side to face him. When she opened them, her blue optics were somewhat brighter and more alert. "Wheeljack? Wh-what happened...?"

The said mech's smile softened, and he reached out to gently touch her face. He hardly believed that she was alive considering her wounds, but when he felt her lean into his fingers, he exhaled in relief. She was definetly awake. Without saying another word, he bent down quickly and gave her a passionate, but soft kiss. When he pulled away in a daze, she managed, "Good to see you, too..."

He just continued to smile, his face still very close to hers. They didn't notice the spectators up on the observation deck... Sideswipe, Smokescreen, Carlos, and Alexis had filed back in after RedAlert briefed them, and they were all treated to the scene below.

"Ooooh! Hehehehe, that's so adorable!" Everyone looked at the mech who said that, Smokescreen. He scratched his chin and gave a nervous laugh. "Uh...I meant... that was... uhh... cute?"

The other two laughed at him for a few moments, then they all averted their gaze back at the three Transformers below. Wheeljack and Windy had kissed each other once more, and were now watching Raider as he began to wake up slowly.

Carlos sniggered a little bit. "Windy and Wheeljack, sittin' in a tree..." But he was silenced when Alexis smacked him upside the head.

"Cut that out!" She chided, her tone friendly.

He rubbed his head absent-mindedly. "I was jus' kiddin, man! Can't ya take a joke?"

Alexis looked angry for about two whole seconds, and then she sighed contentedly. "I know... I'm just so glad Windy's going to be alright."

All of them present nodded quietly, still watching Windracer, Wheeljack, and Raider in the medical bay. They would have to worry about Hotshot later, but for right now, they were all happy that Windracer had survived.

TBC

* * *

DMK: Dang, I can't remember how many writers' blocks I hit near the end... .;; A big thanks to Hotshot94 for helping me out. 

Wheeljack: YAY! SHE'S ALIIIIIIIIIVE! ::huggles Windracer like a stuffed toy::

Windracer: nn;; hehehe...anyway... REVIEW IT THIS TIME! OR ELSE NO MORE!


	11. Easier to Run

DMK: Woo-hoo! Since I named Energon Inferno as my new muse, I've gotten an idea! XD

Inferno: that's good, right?

DMK: yes! It means you're doing your muse-y duties! Which also means you readers are going to get chapter 11! So yay! But a note: I don't rightly think I'm going to have Hotshot be taken hostage. I WILL, however, have the 'Cons come ungodly close to capturing him which further endangers his health. And. Stuff. So yeah. Have fun, and don't kill me for not using the most dramatic scenario! I was going to have Megs stalk Wheeljack later on and almost-

Inferno: DON'T RUIN IT!

DMK: ... ::cough cough:: oh. Yeah. Right. Sorry about that. Read on!

* * *

**Chapter 11**

_ "It's easier to run   
__Replacing this pain with something numb  
__It's so much easier to go _  
_ Than face all this pain here all alone..."_

The pain was blinding. Hotshot awoke slowly, only to fade in and out again. After what seemed like forever, he managed to stay conscious long enough to look around. The sky was dark, thunder rumbled off in the distance. He could almost smell the rain that came to him on tiny gusts of air. Up above him, the mouth of the ravine hung out of reach. That was when the memories of what had happened earlier came flooding back to him...

_ "Something has been taken  
__ From deep inside of me  
__ A secret I've kept locked away  
__ No one can ever see  
__ Wounds so deep they never show _  
_ They never go away  
__ Like moving pictures in my head  
__ For years and years they've played..." _

Hotshot almost wanted to cry. Was Windracer dead? Would she recover? Would the Autobots even think about looking for him? He hardly cared about himself, so long as she was fine. Maybe he'd die right here and now and wouldn't have to ever face up to what he'd done... If only he were so lucky.

_ "If I could change I would  
__ Take back the pain I would  
__ Retrace every wrong move that I made I would  
__ If I could stand up and take the blame I would  
__ If I could take all the shame to the grave I would  
__ If I could change I would  
__ Take back the pain I would  
__ Retrace every wrong move that I made I would  
__ If I could stand up and take the blame I would  
__ I would take all my shame to the grave..." _

He knew what he was feeling was wrong. Wheeljack probably deserved her, right? He'd had such a rough past that he had a hand in... But he cared about Windracer so much... Hotshot didn't want to let her go! Then again... there was Raider. Wheeljack and Windracer cared about him, probably even loved the little thing like he was their own kid. He couldn't break that up, even if he wanted to.

Laying his head back down slowly, he exhaled and let his optics gradually close. He didn't bother to hear the roar of jets above him...

_ "It's easier to run   
__ Replacing this pain with something numb   
__ It's so much easier to go   
__ Than face all this pain here all alone..." _

"Look at what I've found!" Above the ravine circled not Jetfire, but Starscream. He cackled a little, and comlinked Megatron. "Sir, we've got one. He's in poor shape and isn't mobile. Do you want us to capture him?"

"Yes..." Came the Lead Decepticon's voice. "Do it, before the Autobots get here."

"Yes, sir!" Starscream transformed and hovered above the deep hole, looking down at Hotshot. "Tidal Wave, Cyclonus, let's go, we've got a hostage to collect."

Cye reverted to his robot mode and hovered using his rotor. "Gotcha, c'mon ya big lug, get down there and grab 'im!" He motioned to Tidal Wave and then pointed to the ravine.

The silent giant gave a grumble and landed at the ravine's mouth, and peered down. He couldn't fit through it himself, but his arm was more than long enough to reach the semi-conscious Autobot inside. Extending it, he gripped onto the limp figure and pulled him up.

_ "Sometimes I remember   
__ The darkness of my past   
__ Bringing back these memories I wish I didn't have   
__ Sometimes I think of letting go  
__ And never looking back  
__ And never moving forward so  
__ There would never be a past..." _

Hotshot snapped awake, looking about in panic as a hand closed around his torso tightly and began to pull him up. Was that Jetfire picking him up? He noticed the purple coloration, and became somewhat scared. Tidal Wave had him in his grip. Slowly, unceremoniously, he found himself being lifted clear out of the ravine. Starscream and Cyclonus were standing in front of him, grinning almost sadistically.

"Perfect," Starscream said evilly. "He's helpless. This Autobot should make the perfect hostage..."

'Hostage'? dread began to well up inside Hotshot at that word. So he was going to be held prisonner? Used to barter for the other Autobots' Minicons? They wouldn't trade them for him, not after what he did to Windy, he thought in his mind. Maybe he'd be better off captured anyways. No having to face up to this...

'Windy...' Hotshot thought weakly, remembering the first time he'd met her, when she was still just a normal human. Remembering he'd been the one to save her. Remembering when he came to her to talk out his problems. Remembering the day she died as a human. Remembering when he first met her in her new body. 'I'm so sorry for doing this to you... please, forgive me...' He couldn't move, not even to defend himself. He might not have even wanted to. He shut down his optics again as Starscream commanded the other two to retreat back to base with their cargo.

_ "If I could change I would  
Take back the pain I would  
Retrace every wrong move that I made I would  
If I could stand up and take the blame I would  
If I could take all the shame to the grave I would  
If I could change I would  
Take back the pain I would  
Retrace every wrong move that I made I would  
If I could stand up and take the blame I would  
I would take all my shame to the grave..."_

"Hotshot!" Came a voice through his veil of half-consciousness. "I'll save ya!" The sound of laser rounds followed not long after.

"Agh! It's that stupid shuttle!" Starscream growled. "Run him into the ground! Before he calls for backup!"

Cyclonus cackled and took to the air. "Gladly! Eehehehehehehe! Come n' get it, Autoscum!"

Jetfire transformed as well, pulling out his plasma blaster and firing off. "I don't THINK so! You're not getting Hotshot!"

Tidal Wave, angered at the annoyance that came in the form of an Autobot, began to close his hands around Hotshot, who groaned in pain as he felt his body start to crack and bend under the strain. 'Primus... I'm going to die like this...? Crumpled like a tin can?' Deep down, he felt like he was getting what he deserved...

_ "Just washing it aside  
All of the helplessness inside  
Pretending I don't feel misplaced  
Is so much simpler than change..." _

"Drop him, NOW!" Jetfire rushed at the battleship, shooting his plasma blaster off some more. Firing off the jets in his feet, he managed to hover long enough to hit the giant square in the optic with a round. Tidal Wave shouted in pain, and decided it was better off to leave him be. He opened his hands, and the half-crushed form of Hotshot fell to the ground with a dull thud.

Cyclonus scowled. They'd lost their hostage! "You're _going_ to pay for that, Autobot!"

"You slagging wish!" With a battle cry, Jetfire connected with Cyclonus in midair, slamming his clenched fist right into his face. He rocked back, holding his cheek, and felt the Autobot Vice Commander grab him by the foot and swing him over his head. "Go...back... to the pit... you Decepticreeps came from!" Shouting again, Jetfire hurled the helicopter 'Con down towards the approaching Starscream.

"Gaaaaiiieee!" Cyclonus went flying and slammed hard into the seeker, who fell from the sky and proceeded to land on top of Tidal Wave. The three, shouting, cursing, tangled in each other's limbs, got up just in time to be blanketed by more Plasma rounds. Cye was struck hard in the chest with one and fell back over, having been knocked for quite a loop.

Hotshot watched all of this in a daze. He was going to be saved? Why, so he could be punished later? Or did the Autobots really care about him? Well, it wasn't like he could flee. Everything from his hips down had no feeling, and his arms felt like they'd been shattered from the second fall.

_ "It's easier to run  
Replacing this pain with something numb  
It's so much easier to go  
Than face all this pain here all alone..." _

"Argh, retreat!" Starscream shouted, covering his face with one of his hands protectively. "This isn't worth it!"

Tidal Wave grumbled. He could take him! But, an order was an order. Picking Cyclonus up by the leg, he took to the air and followed Starscream upward and away from the berserking Autobot. Their warp gate activated, and soon it was just Jetfire and Hotshot. He knelt down by the crumpled mech worriedly.

"Hotshot! C'mon buddy, speak to me!" Jetfire seemed to be miles away from him, his voice was faint and hard to make out. "Hang on, I'll getcha outta here!"

The mech's optics flickered to life for just a moment, and he used the remains of his strength to look up at him. "Jet...fire...?"

"It's me buddy, just rest, you're safe." He took his advice. Hotshot put his head back down to the ground and groaned softly as the pain became numbing. He hardly felt Jetfire pick him up.

_ "It's easier to run  
If I could change I would  
Take back the pain I would  
Retrace every wrong move that I made  
It's so much easier to go  
If I could change I would  
Take back the pain I would  
Retrace every wrong move that I made I would  
If I could stand up and take the blame I would  
I would take all my shame, to the grave_..."

"W-Windy...is...she alright...?" His strength was starting to fade again, but he had to get that question out.

"She's fine, 'Shot, you'll be seein' her back at the base real soon."

It felt like a weight was lifted from his shoulders, but at that point it was too late. Hotshot gave a shuddering sigh, then, and blacked out once more. His friend looked down at the crumpled form of his teammate forlornly, cracks and dents covering his body, and activated his jet thrusters. They roared to life as he took off into the waning night, and soon the Autobot's second in command was heading back to the base in hopes of being able to save his friend.

TBC

* * *

DMK: dang, I never knew how hard songfics were... .;; eck. That sucked. Plus it's the second one I've done so yeah, I need to get the hang of them... ::sigh:: forgive that, it was mainly a filler and junk... A bad filler but whahey. Review pleeze??? 


End file.
